F80 or F82 with small kids?

[R N M]

Originally Posted by hwelvaar

I don't understand why any parent would want to put its child in a rear facing seat on the back seats ?

1. you can't easily check on your child. you can't even see it.
2. what a boring experience for your child !?

Umm its required by law and hospitals will not release u unless u have the baby seat.

Usually one of u (father or mother) sits in the back with the baby.

[solstice]

Originally Posted by R N M

Umm its required by law and hospitals will not release u unless u have the baby seat.

Usually one of u (father or mother) sits in the back with the baby.

+1. The main reason is that a baby's neck can't even support the weight of it's own head. The strongest force in an accident is from head on collisions and by being rearward facing the head and neck is supported by the seat.

Do not put your baby forward facing.

[CanAutM3]

Originally Posted by R N M

Please post a pic - i find it hard to believe this.

You'll have to take my word for it because the current setup has the Recaro of my 3 year old behind me and the Peg Perego of my 3 week old behind the passenger seat. I had the Peg Perego behind the driver's seat when I had only one kid.

I guess a difference with the coupe is than you can easily lean and move the front seat forward to take the rear facing baby seat in/out of its spot. So when you are sitting in the front seat, the front seat can be repositioned right against the baby seat. I guess in a sedan, you need to leave some room to manipulate the seat.

[BlackLight]

and they were 9 and 12 when we got the M3.
I preferred the 2 door, since they are not able to open the doors themselves.
On long trips we use the Sienna anyway.

[s4play]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Well, there is possible and there is comfortable. Is it possible to put an infant or toddler in the back of an M4? Sure, people even put toddlers in the back of 911 Cabrios!

However, there is a certain comfort level with being able to get in the rear of the car without having to move the seats forward, etc. How much pain and inconvenience you're willing to put up with is entirely up to you.

Don't forget the smaller trunk.

I realize this is a BMW forum and most people are "car first, mentality" but seriously if you are planning to put kids in the car, GET A 4-DOOR CAR!

We have plenty of cars in our stable however I bought the M3 with the notion to take the kids out on days it's just daddy and kids. Forget any 2-door coupe, guys who tell you otherwise either

a) has a very strong back
b) lying to you or never tried themselves

Moving that power seat forward and back plus climbing in to strap them in each time gets old really fast and you will regret not having 4-doors. If you are running errands around town and stop at even just 2 places (that's 6 times minimum you are doing this)

I have buddies with GTR's and baby seats in back but it's more of a joke. My Recaro seat won't even fit his car without hitting the side rear glass. They only take the kid to the car meet and back....that is not using your car.

My point is anything can be done if you are on the extreme end but for day to day driving, you have to be realistic.

My e90 m3 gets the job done with 2 kids, stroller and all the kid related junk you need to have just in case.

btw since you are talking about newborn which means rearward facing seats that will mean your wife better be under 5' tall if you are getting a coupe ~ again not realistic.

here's my setup that will be transitioned to my new M3 eventually:

(**in case future dads are wondering, the seat on the left is a Clek foonf and the one on the right is a Radian ~ we own a total of 5 baby seats since moving them around is a chore in itself)

[aus]

Originally Posted by hwelvaar

I don't understand why any parent would want to put its child in a rear facing seat on the back seats ?

1. you can't easily check on your child. you can't even see it.
2. what a boring experience for your child !?

This is a joke right?
Or a Troll.

Originally Posted by R N M

Please post a pic - i find it hard to believe this.

The only way it would fit behind the drive is if it's some small rear facing seat. No way a Peg or Britax fit back there.

[thai357sig]

Originally Posted by Needsdecaf

Bullsh!t.

If you put a rear facing seat behind a front seat in anything other than a limo, it's mega compromise for the front passenger. In a car the size of an M3, I doubt that anyone would be able to sit in that seat. Note I said M3, M4 would be worse.

Rear facing seats are the devil unless you mount them in the middle and it can slip between the two front seats. In my Volvo V70R, my wife had to move WAY up when we had our second child and she had the rear facing seat behind her. With our first, we split the two front with the child seat in the middle.

Read my post again! I did not say that anyone would sit in the passenger front seat with the rear facing baby carrier installed right behind it. I also pointed out that the wife would be sitting in the back with the baby. Not in the front! The front in this case is used primarily for storage such as baby's bag or anything else you need to carry.

In any regards you have two options: either bend over while standing outside of the car to tuck the kids in a sedan; or bend over with a leg inside a coupe trying to secure your kid. I just rather do with a sedan. YMMV.

[Hoopumpers]

You'll always drive her SUV with the kids. Buy yourself a proper 2 seat sports car.

[mkoesel]

Too many variables here:

- You don't know how much kid-duty you will have.
- You think you'll keep the old 328i, but it might turn out to be a major annoyance to maintain and store a third car.
- Even if above is not the case, you think you'll be cool taking the old 328i sedan when necessary for kids, but you may not be prepared for the suckiness that is leaving the M at home for a pedestrian DD.

That said, to get to your question: my two kids have grown up riding in the back of my E46 M3 cab and E93 M3. Only on rare occasion did I need to put a rear facing seat in there, but when I did I put the top down so as to have room to wrestle it down. At 6'4" I am not sure I could have done it in a coupe. Front facing seats are much easier to install of course.

A four-seat coupe (or convertible in my case) is a perfectly usable DD for someone whose daily does not need to serve as the primary kid hauler. The back seats are there for a reason - to transport people. It's just that you have to understand the compromises and limitations.

When the time comes to buy, discuss all of these important points with your wife and decide what is right. That aside, in my opinion you should skip the third car, and plan to drive the M every day. It is the perfect medicine after a long day at work.

Originally Posted by DDS2015

So my GF and soon to be fiancé/wife says that she has no problem with me getting the M car I've always wanted, but says that the 2 door is stupid because we'll have small kids in the near future. We'll have 3 cars at this point, she'll have an SUV and I'll keep my E90 for a winter car. I keep saying that by the time I'll actually be getting the car the first kid would probably be only in a booster seat and would be able to walk in/out of the car on their own. Thus my question... How many people out there with E92/F32/F82 had/have small kids that they put in the back seat?

Note that I want the M4.

[Needsdecaf]

Originally Posted by Hoopumpers

You'll always drive her SUV with the kids. Buy yourself a proper 2 seat sports car.

And how do you know that ? Do you know his routine? Not everyone has a wife who stays at home with the kids.

[CanAutM3]

Originally Posted by aus

The only way it would fit behind the drive is if it's some small rear facing seat. No way a Peg or Britax fit back there.

Funny how people keep speculating without facts.

I'll say it again, a Peg Perego rear facing seat fits perfectly fine behind the drivers seat of my E92 and with the driver's seat adjusted for my 5'9" there is even room to spare. I know because I did it for 12 months .

[Powaup]

Go for it. You can do it

[varsity]

As a data point, here is my current situation for my 3-person family with a 17-month old: '14 Cayenne with Recaro ProRide in driver's side rear, '06 Cayenne with Recaro ProRide in driver's side rear, and '10 E coupe with Graco SnugRide in passenger-side rear.

I picked driver's-side rear for the Cayennes because in my garage, it's easier to install/remove the kid from the driver's side. Placing the child seats in the middle seat was not an option because I frequently use the other two rear seats. I picked passenger-side rear in the E because the child seat wouldn't fit behind the driver's seat when I'm driving the car. It is easy to install/remove the kid in the E - despite it being a coupe - because the car's rear windows roll down. But even if the windows didn't roll down, I would hold the kid, sit down in the driver's-side rear seat, and put the kid into the seat. This is not difficult and it's not a contortion.

Obviously the key difference is that none of our current cars are BMW coupes, let alone 4-series coupes. My plan is to trade the '06 Cayenne for M4. 90% of the time, I'll be the only one in the car, and the 10% of the time that my kid will be in the car doesn't justify the need to purchase M3. I mean, I'll be going to the track more often than I'll be putting the kid in the car.

Everyone's situation is different, and there's no need to slam others for their lifestyle and car choices. This scenario works for me, my family, my needs, and my garage, but it may not work for you.

[varsity]

Originally Posted by varsity

Everyone's situation is different, and there's no need to slam others for their lifestyle and car choices. This scenario works for me, my family, my needs, and my garage, but it may not work for you.

The other points I'd make are these: 1) not all child seats fit in all cars; 2) even if a child seat fits in a car, it may not fit with all drivers; 3) some people prioritize child seat models over cars, and; 4) some people prioritize cars over child seat models. Pick what works for you.

Personally, I really like the Recaro ProRide because it seems very well built, safe, and fits great in the Cayennes. It is too large for the E coupe, and accordingly I'm quite sure it'll be too large for M4. Maybe it'll fit in M3, but with 6' me in the driver's seat, I doubt it. I deeply dislike the Graco Snugride because it's poorly built, floppy even when properly installed, and puts the kid at a weird astronaut angle staring at the ceiling. My plan for the M4 is to buy like six different child seats, test fit all of them, keep the one that works, and return the rest.

[Dinh335]

my advice: buy a car seat like you buy a car: Find a small, safe, lightweight one with small footprint.

You'll be able to fit rear facing until they are almost a year, and unless your passenger is over 6 feet, they should have enough room.

But then, in a 2 door car, around 11-12 months baby will be getting too big to slide in the small area that's remaining between the rear pillar and car seat rear facing.

But they will be too small still to spin the seat forward facing.

My advice is get the sedan like others have said. The cars have the latch system like prev mentioned so securing is fine, i have a Britax Pavillion seat, and fits fine behind front passenger, rear or fwd facing it didn't make much difference. (remember all seats aren't created equal...some seats have a huge footprint)... and wife has plenty of room in front (5'9). I have the f30 335 so the M3 shouldn't be any different other than the rear seats have a integrated head rest that pushes forward a hair.

Hope this helps.

Also, your mindset will change once you have kids. The cool factor of having 2 doors or all your "cool requirements" come 2nd to your kids safety. I used to love the loud exhaust on my old rx8 and stiff ride, but you'll be surprised how quickly your mindset changes to family first, you 2nd... . So keep that in mind and good luck.

[Sir Loin]

With all the feedback, OP has gone back to rethink life and marriage. We scared him away.

[elitex]

I voted F80 with kids. If the question is that if it can be done then yes. If the question is that is it the best solution then off course NO.

[/// M sa]

M3 with kids for sure, I sat in both cars and its just a PITA to get in and out of the back seat of the M4. Just my opinion.

[s4play]

Funny I was talking to my brother yesterday who has a 1 year old as well as we were talking about baby shower gifts for another friend.

here's some more food for though:

1) Every baby seat has different seat heights which vary by quite a bit. In a large SUV or minivan this is really of no concern as higher is better for kids to see out the window but in a small sedan, height is of big concern. My brother has a Britax that sits so high I swear his kid could grab the sunroof and jump out (if he had the strength).

2) The Radian RXT (we have two of them in gray and purple) has the lowest seating position and works great for sedans like the M3. It's quite narrow but is very comfortable. You might be able to fit 3 across with this one and if you do put it in the middle, it can easily fit passengers on each side. This seat can also be rearward facing so theoretically you can use this seat from infant to toddler. Also makes a great travel seat because it folds and turns into a backpack. Unfortunately it's not the lightest seat in the world.

3) Recaro ProRide is by far the LIGHTEST seat I own and is the easiest to strap into most modern cars, if I had to remove a seat often, this is the best seat. It has a cool fishnet holder for a drink holder which is much better than most cup holders that protrude out and gets broken after a few days. It's rather wide so will only fit on the window seats and works with forward facing only.

4) The Clek Foonf advertises itself as the strongest and safest seat in the world. What it doesn't tell you is because of all the steel bracing, this is the HEAVIEST seat too. This seat also sits a bit high so makes loading your child into a sedan tricky. Strapping this car seat into the car is also very difficult as it has both LATCH straps and also hard LATCH handles. For this reason alone I would never move this thing around much hence it stays in my M3 always. Clek also advertises this seat as narrow enough to install "3-across" in sedans but I don't see how that's possible in the M3. Maybe in a larger SUV like the Cayenne or ML it might work. This seat works from infant to toddler so will grow with you.

5) Last seat we have is the Maxi Cosi and this one is a wide seat so save this one for SUV's or minivans. My wife likes the built in cup holder that can't be broken and the neoprene material is much cooler for kids who get hot easily. We have never tried to move this seat into her CT or our smaller cars. Just stays in the SUV. Note is that his is another one of those infant to toddler seats so can go rearward or forward.


Hope these notes help prospective dads who might shop online. Every seat is unique so buy the one that fits how you plan to use it. For me, the seats have to look good and also color match the car it's in. Only reason we got the purple is because my daughter requested that one recently.

[SF848]

I went and test drove the current 3 & 4 series this past weekend... its pretty hard to get in and out of the back of the 4. I can only imagine if you had to put a rear facing child seat back there.

M3 will be much more practical than the M4 if you are planning to have more than 2 people total in the car.

[aus]

Originally Posted by CanAutM3

Funny how people keep speculating without facts.

I'll say it again, a Peg Perego rear facing seat fits perfectly fine behind the drivers seat of my E92 and with the driver's seat adjusted for my 5'9" there is even room to spare. I know because I did it for 12 months .

Saw that afterwards. You have the carry/cradle type or a real baby seat?

Funny how some people get so bent out of shape over a babyseat..
.

[DDS2015]

Originally Posted by Sir Loin

With all the feedback, OP has gone back to rethink life and marriage. We scared him away.

Lol, thats what you'd think... But I've been reading and following the thread (but for some reason I can't reply to it on my iPhone or iPad).

There's a lot of great advice in here and I appreciate all of it. I've been really looking forward to this car purchase more than a lot else recently because it's going to be my "I made it finally" car. That's why I wanted a car that was going to be no compromises to me because it was going to be for ME. However after reading through all of the posts in this thread it's proven what didn't want it to. Not to say that the M3 is a bad car over the M4. Both are near identical IN MY OPINION , save for some carbon fibre. The points though about being able to enjoy it as a family are what swayed my decision one way over another. Realistically it'll see track duty once, maybe twice a year, so my time enjoying it will be with my future family. Family after all trumps any car.

Oh, and my GF/ future wife is 5'11" and I'm 6'1" thus it'll be a tight squeeze no matter what. However I'm also not about to start compromising baby-seats just so that it'll fit in the car. This is something that she's going to research heavily and she will find the best one for our needs.

Thanks everyone for the feedback, I've really appreciated all of it and some real life experience has shed a lot of light on this matter for me. I guess I can also point out too that if I get the M3 she said I can have it sooner (2 years before the coupe). First world problems, I know...

M3 it is then!